1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a print control device connectable via a network to an information processing device that sends an instruction and document thereto and the information processing device connectable via the network to the print control device that receives an instruction and document therefrom.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many varieties of memory devices are sold in the world, such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, SD (Secure Digital) card and CF (Compact Flash) card etc. A user of a USB memory device can carry it with a huge amount of data freely like a tote bag and connect it to personal computers in an office and home. For enhanced security of the memory device, recently a USB memory device having a fingerprint authentication system has been sold. There are two types of the USB memory device for the specialized market. The first type of the USB memory device obtains a fingerprint of the user using a sensor on the memory device and sends information related to the obtained fingerprint to application software installed into the personal computers in order to register the fingerprint information in the personal computers for the fingerprint authentication. After registering it in a personal computer, when the USB memory device is connected to that computer and sends to it new fingerprint information obtained by the sensor, the personal computer (PC) executes the application software in order to determine if the new fingerprint information corresponds with the registered fingerprint information for the fingerprint authentication.
The second type of USB memory device has a microprocessor and application software for the fingerprint authentication therein. The second type of USB memory device obtains a fingerprint of the user using a sensor on the memory device and registers the fingerprint information therein. After registering it in the USB memory device, when the USB memory device is connected to a personal computer, the microprocessor executes the application software in order to determine if the new fingerprint information obtained by the sensor corresponds with the registered fingerprint information for the fingerprint authentication. The second type of USB memory device has higher security than the first type of USB memory device, since the second type of USB memory device does not send the fingerprint information outside of the device and sends only a result of the fingerprint authentication to the personal computer.
Recently it has been necessary to connect the USB memory device to an MFP (Multi Function Peripheral) in order to print documents stored in the USB memory device or store scanned documents into the USB memory device. Generally an MFP is shared in an office and used to process many confidential items of information.
However, in this situation, in a case where the USB memory device stores a non-native document (a non-printable format document) and is connected to the MFP, the MFP cannot interpret it and print it, since the non-native document has a format that the MFP is not able to interpret. The non-native document can be interpreted by appropriate applications, but it cannot be interpreted in the MFP. Further, if the USB memory device storing both a non-native document and a native document is connected to the MFP, a user of the MFP cannot see which document is a non-native document on an operation panel of the MFP. Also, in a case where the SD card or CF card (memory) storing the non-native document is connected to a digital camera, the digital camera cannot display information related to the non-native document on an operation panel of the digital camera, since the digital camera does not recognize it. The user of the digital camera can see only information (icon or thumbnail, etc.) related to a native document like image data.